Little bugs in the database 4

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StooB
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by StooB »

8BitAG wrote: Mon Aug 03, 2020 4:01 pm
StooB wrote: Mon Aug 03, 2020 1:50 pm There doesn't appear to be any evidence of it also being supplied via the Home Computer Club - it definitely wasn't in my copy at the time.
Is it currently in the database? I have a digital copy of it.
Yes, there's a pdf in the downloads section of the GAC entry, but if it was sold separately it should really have its own entry.
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by 8BitAG »

StooB wrote: Mon Aug 03, 2020 4:05 pm Yes, there's a pdf in the downloads section of the GAC entry, but if it was sold separately it should really have its own entry.
I wonder if their Adventure Designer Pad should also be listed in the database.

Edit: In addition to the adventure news articles you posted links to, the Adventure Writer's Handbook is specifically mentioned as being available separately in one of their adverts so, yes, definitely needs its own entry...

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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by moroz1999 »

https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/index.p ... el_id=8230
L.G. Baumann is from the Republic of South Africa, according to author's comment on zxart.
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by Stu »

Some amendments for Stefan Vogt's games:

The Curse of Rabenstein (+3 version)
The Curse of Rabenstein (ZX Spectrum Next version)

These should have each other added as an Other Version.

The ZX Spectrum Next entry is missing the remote link that the +3 version has: https://8bitgames.itch.io/rabenstein/de ... nstein-out

The game is authored with DAAD.

The game is also on the following formats (links where available):
C64
Plus/4: http://plus4world.powweb.com/software/T ... Rabenstein
CPC: https://www.cpc-power.com/index.php?pag ... &num=17444
Amiga: http://www.lemonamiga.com/games/details.php?id=4424
Atari ST: https://www.atarilegend.com/games/games ... me_id=7540
DOS


Hibernated 1: This Place is Death

Remote link for this game: https://8bitgames.itch.io/hibernated1

The game is also on the following formats:
C64: http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=27443
Plus/4: http://plus4world.powweb.com/software/Hibernated_1
CPC: https://www.cpc-power.com/index.php?pag ... &num=15220
MSX
Amiga
Atari ST: https://www.atarilegend.com/games/games ... me_id=7348
DOS


Eight Feet Under

The game is also on the following formats:
C64
Plus/4: http://plus4world.powweb.com/software/Eight_Feet_Under
CPC
MSX
Amiga
Atari ST
DOS


Eight Feed Under is marked as "Distribution denied - still for sale", whereas the others have no availability given at all (but don't have downloads listed in ZXDB either). Since all the games are made available on a pay-what-you-want basis, should they all be "Distribution denied - still for sale"?
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by 8BitAG »

Note: The version listed on Spectrum Computing is the initial PAWed 2018 version of Hibernated 1, and not the later 2019 boxed/digital release that was made with DAAD. Information about the DAAD version has not yet been added to that entry even though it includes the physical box image.
Eight Feed Under is marked as "Distribution denied - still for sale", whereas the others have no availability given at all (but don't have downloads listed in ZXDB either). Since all the games are made available on a pay-what-you-want basis, should they all be "Distribution denied - still for sale"?
Eight Feet Under was originally an exclusive with physical editions of Hibernated 1; which is where the distribution denied comment came from. The bonus adventure has since been made more widely available.
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by Stu »

8BitAG wrote: Fri Aug 07, 2020 4:25 pm
Note: The version listed on Spectrum Computing is the initial PAWed 2018 version of Hibernated 1, and not the later 2019 boxed/digital release that was made with DAAD. Information about the DAAD version has not yet been added to that entry even though it includes the physical box image.
Ah I see -- I wonder if the two versions ought to be listed separately then? Being developed in 2 different engines probably makes them more different to each other than, say, Chess and Masterchess?
8BitAG wrote: Fri Aug 07, 2020 4:25 pm
Eight Feed Under is marked as "Distribution denied - still for sale", whereas the others have no availability given at all (but don't have downloads listed in ZXDB either). Since all the games are made available on a pay-what-you-want basis, should they all be "Distribution denied - still for sale"?
Eight Feet Under was originally an exclusive with physical editions of Hibernated 1; which is where the distribution denied comment came from. The bonus adventure has since been made more widely available.
In which case I guess it probably makes more sense to remove the "Distribution denied" notice rather than add it to the others?
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by 8BitAG »

Stu wrote: Fri Aug 07, 2020 6:48 pm Ah I see -- I wonder if the two versions ought to be listed separately then? Being developed in 2 different engines probably makes them more different to each other than, say, Chess and Masterchess?
No, I think the current DB policy is for them to be listed under the same entry. I generally agree with the decision in these sorts of cases; although I have argued differently for games where the two versions/editions of the adventures are much more different.

The PAW and DAAD versions in this case are actually very similar; and they both were developed from the original C64 Quilled version. The three generations of "Gilsoft" tools share common DNA.

I often prototype my stuff on the PAW before converting it to DAAD (if I want to move it onto other platforms). It's basically fundementally the same database.
In which case I guess it probably makes more sense to remove the "Distribution denied" notice rather than add it to the others?
Yes, definitely. Just external link to the game page for the downloads, instead of hosting the files, the same as with the other titles.
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by Frankie »

About this German game:

https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/2 ... _Labyrinth

I know the game states 1983, but it can't have been released that year. Take the serial number on the spines of the games from that company, and you get this:

1257 Physik-Lernprogram 1983
1258 Zeichensätze 1984
1259 Unifile 1984
1262 3D Labyrinth 1983

With the highest serial number, it can't have been released before the two games from 1984 with lower serial number. I've checked the two 1984 programs, and they state 1984 in the program.

So, I think we can conclude that 3D Labyrinth might have been written in 1983, but it must have been released in 1984+

BTW, I'm about to submit uMIA 1260 from that company :-)
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by +3code »

This game:
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/7 ... um/Wamwort
isn't from Dinamic.
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by 8BitAG »

+3code wrote: Wed Aug 12, 2020 6:09 pm This game:
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/7 ... um/Wamwort
isn't from Dinamic.
Yeah, we just have it listed under the author's own name on CASA. (The external link on that page gives a good overview of the background of the various different versions of the adventure)
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by Juan F. Ramirez »

+3code wrote: Wed Aug 12, 2020 6:09 pm This game:
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/7 ... um/Wamwort
isn't from Dinamic.
Curious, it displays the Dinamic logo...

Image

Or is it a wrong in-game pic?
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by +3code »

Juan F. Ramirez wrote: Thu Aug 13, 2020 9:39 am
+3code wrote: Wed Aug 12, 2020 6:09 pm This game:
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/7 ... um/Wamwort
isn't from Dinamic.
Curious, it displays the Dinamic logo...

Image

Or is it a wrong in-game pic?
No, the pic is ok. In the 1989 "Concurso de Aventuras de MicroHobby" a lot of programmers used logos from Dinamic/AD/Aventuras AD, see for example

https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/1 ... trum/Hades

or

https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/6 ... lace_Hotel

or

https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/6 ... ir_Sigfrid
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by druellan »

+3code wrote: Wed Aug 12, 2020 6:09 pm This game:
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/7 ... um/Wamwort
isn't from Dinamic.
Good catch! This is an unauthorized use of the logo. wonder if the author put it there to hint he wanted his work published :D

Nice graphics btw!
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by Audionautas »

druellan wrote: Thu Aug 13, 2020 11:52 am
Good catch! This is an unauthorized use of the logo. wonder if the author put it there to hint he wanted his work published :D

Nice graphics btw!
That Microhobby magazine contest was organized by Aventuras AD, so it makes sense a lot of programmers used a Dinamic logo at the time. You can read the full story here: https://wiki.caad.es/Concurso_de_aventu ... MicroHobby
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by sho »

Herv Jones = Merv Jones?
Else I guess it should be Hark, Hartin and Hike?
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/3 ... the_Future

Then again, Merv Jones = Mervin James = Mervyn Jones?
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/9 ... _Simulator

To be more specific, this is the only place his name is printed out in full I can find:
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/page.ph ... 21&page=95

The rest are all abbreviated to 'Merv':
https://zxart.ee/eng/authors/m/mervin-james/
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by Stu »

The Spy Who Loved Me

This preview/interview gives the following developer roles:

Paul Margrave - Design
John Kavanagh - Design
Tony West - Graphics
Lloyd Baker - Graphics
Dominic Wood - Programming
Matt Furniss - Music
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by sho »

Review Sinclair User#76 - 1988/7 p.18
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/page.ph ... 76&page=18
Is incorrectly attached to 'Hercules'
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/2 ... m/Hercules
(also present for the correct game)
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/2 ... the_Damned
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by Frankie »

Not sure if this is the right place for stuff like this, but here we go :D

I've noticed that the Type-In game Hard Lines from Your Computer November 1984, page 197, isn't working. When you complete the first screen, it gives an error message as there is an error in line 1130. Here is a fix I've done by looking it up in the mag, and the game is now working. Great game really, which I think could have sold on it own back in 82/83 :)

https://www.dropbox.com/s/n2v7flv4u08nx ... s.zip?dl=0
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by Audionautas »

Hi

On the ZXDB it is stated that Dusko Dimitrijevic (famous coder of Kung Fu, Movie or Phantom Club amongst others) is from Serbia and that's completely wrong, he was born in 1961 in Osijek, former Yugoslavia, nowadays Croatia and he still lives there: (https://www.facebook.com/dusko.dimitrijevic.56). So his nationality should be changed to Croatian.

Some background. The Spanish edition of Retro Gamer magazine normally includes several articles and reports of its own preparation, not just simple translations of the British edition and done by some well-known colleagues of the Spanish retro-scene. A few issues back, my friend JMV (Jesús Martínez del Vas), member of El Mundo del Spectrum website interviewed Dusko Dimitrijevic about his Spectrum years and did a great reportage (shame it has not been translated into English for the British edition, it deserves it). (if you're interested you can purchase the magazine here: http://store.axelspringer.es/videojuego ... gamer.html).

Anyway, in that extensive coverage (8 pages) among other things, Dusko comments the following about his game Movie (https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/3 ... trum/Movie).

(Googlish translation):

After returning to his country, Dusko worked six months in his new program. “We look at the Ultimate games to imagine how they did it. When I say 'us', I mean Mario Mandic and myself. Mandic was a high school student at the time. The game design was mine but the programming was done by both of us. You can find out many things just by watching the game. We did the algorithms and math that underpinned the engine of the game, and I think on a couple of occasions we took different paths than those followed by Ultimate. Especially in relation to buffering and dumping elements on the screen. I was always very confident in the efficiency of my code so I believed that my graphical functions would be faster than anyone else's. Presumptuous, I know. I had studied the Manic Miner code before and was not impressed: it was a fantastic game, revolutionary and a lot of fun at the time, but the code seemed just… correct. I preferred to make my own code ”.

You can check the English text above highlighted in red on these two scans of the Retro Gamer magazine Spanish edition:

Image

Image

As you can see Dusko mentions MARIO MANDIC as co-programmer. His name only appears once on the ZXDB related to this Suzy Soft game (https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/list?label_id=9122), so I think he should be credited for MOVIE as well.

So the team behind MOVIE should be as follows.

* DUSKO DIMITRIJEVIC. Game Design/Programming (CROATIA).
* MARIO MANDIC. Programming (CROATIA).
* DRAGOLJUB ANDJELKOVIC. Graphic artist (SERBIA).
* F. DAVID THORPE. Loading screen (UK).
* BOB WAKELIN. Cover artist (UK).


All the best!
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by 8BitAG »

Jack Lockerby / River Software corrections...

Some *important* updates here... including versions that are incorrectly catalogued, partially missing or missing in action.

The following corrections are from information in reviews and advertising from the issues in volume 1 of Adventure Probe, which were published in 1986 and 1987.

The Hammer of Grimmold
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/6 ... f_Grimmold
was initially published in 1986 (not 1987)

The first ZX Spectrum version was produced using the Quill. This is the version currently catalogued as the TZX on the site.

There was a later PAWed remake of the game. This is the version that the two snapshots are from. The PAWed version's TZX is missing from the page.

The screenshot in the entry is from the PAWed version.

See comparison below...
Image
(PAWed version shown in main screen, Quilled version in insert)

Realm of Darkness
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/6 ... f_Darkness
again is from 1986

Again... it was a Quilled game first. This is the version that the first TZX (labelled River Software) is from.

The second TZX (and Z80 file) labelled Zenobi Software is a later PAWed version; as are the screenshots used on the page.

See comparison below...
Image
(PAWed version is in main screen, Quilled version in insert)

Mutant
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/6 ... rum/Mutant
again is from 1986

It was a Quilled game first and again was later released as an updated version produced with the PAW.

I'm still working out which version is which here... there are several variations archived...

The first TZX listed is odd... Seems to be a one-filed version of the presumably PAWed edition... doesn't quite match the known, usual PAW version in terms of UDGs.
The second TZX is Quilled, I think.
The third TZX is also Quilled.
The Z80 file is the PAWed version.
Meaning that the proper PAWed TZX is missing.
Z80 - Zenobi - is a PAWed version

Witch Hunt
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/7 ... Witch_Hunt
again 1986, not 1987

again a Quilled game first with a later updated PAWed version

In this entry the Quilled version is already labelled. Although the second TZX is also the Quilled version.

The third TZX and the Z80 file is the PAWed version.

Lifeboat
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/6 ... m/Lifeboat
again 1986, not 1987

Matchmaker
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/6 ... Matchmaker
again 1986, not 1987

Originally a Quilled game with a later updated PAWed version.

The TZX is the Quilled version.

The Z80 is the PAWed version.

The TZX for the PAWed version is missing from the page.

The Cup
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/6 ... um/The_Cup
Also originally from 1986, I believe.

Originally a Quilled game before getting a PAWed remake.

The first TZX on the site is for the PAWed version.

The second Z80 file is from a *different* version of the PAWed game.

The Quilled version is missing from the archive.

The Jade Necklace
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/6 ... e_Necklace
Originally from 1986

originally a Quilled game before getting a PAWed remake.

The first TZX on the site is the PAWed version.

The TAP is the Quilled version.

The Z80 is a *different*, later PAWed version than the TZX.

Section of a River advert showing how the earlier Quilled adventures were being updated to PAWed games...
Image
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by 8BitAG »

The Adventure Builder System
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/1 ... der_System

Had an additional, graphics utility...
ABS Graphics
aka Graphic Aid / Graphic Aid for Adventure Builder System

which requires a separate entry in the database.

See...
Image

Source: Adventure Probe, Issue 3, August 1986

This additional utility is also mentioned in the Alpha Omega release instructions.

ie.
GRAPHIC AID
for
THE ADVENTURE BUILDER SYSTEM


Also available from ALPHA OMEGA SOFTWARE ... a simple to use program
which will incorporate INSTANT part-screen graphics into your
masterpieces.


For use ONLY with the ADVENTURE BUILDER SYSTEM, and only �2.50 from

ALPHA OMEGA SOFTWARE
CRL HOUSE 9 KINGS YARD
CARPENTERS ROAD
LONDON E152HD
01-985 6877
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by druellan »

druellan wrote: Wed Jul 22, 2020 4:13 am Dominoes (https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/1 ... m/Dominoes)

Something very odd about this game. D.H.L. is credited, but his name is not present on the game. But, if you inspect the code of the TAP version, you can find "1982 by IMAGINE SOFTWARÅCopyright: Program,Audio,VisuaìPresentóBY D.H.L?" This looks like a leftover on the tape image.
Took the time to investigate this one a little more. The fragment of the code at the end of the tape seems to be identical to Arcadia's code. So, probably the image was extracted from a previously used tape. In any case, pretty sure Lawson is not one of the authors.

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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by +3code »

This game...
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/6 ... e_Prisoner
...wasn't developed with Quill, but with Hisoft Pascal:

Image
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by 8BitAG »

+3code wrote: Mon Aug 17, 2020 8:33 pm This game...
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/6 ... e_Prisoner
...wasn't developed with Quill, but with Hisoft Pascal:

Image
Yeah, I think that's an issue that's carried over from the old WOS.

There are several The Prisoner games that I can remember trying to untangle many years ago... They'd been mixed up on the old WOS, with files and references jumbled up. I think I submitted corrections to sort most of it out but the Quill reference will be a tag that refers to one of the other games.
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by Rorthron »

6715|Mugsy
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/6 ... trum/Mugsy

Additional credit information per the inlay at Mobygames:
https://www.mobygames.com/game/mugsy/co ... Id,423201/
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